Wales forward Luke Charteris will join Bath from Racing 92 at the end of the season.

The 6ft 9in second-row has 62 international caps and played in all five of Wales' matches at this year's World Cup.

Charteris made more than 140 appearances for Newport Gwent Dragons earlier in his career before joining Perpignan in 2012, Racing in 2014 and now Bath.

"It is such an ambitious club, and that's a great atmosphere to be joining," Charteris said.

"They put a lot of emphasis on player development, making sure that everyone is improving no matter how experienced they are and that is a very exciting environment to be part of.

"There is some incredible talent in the squad and I'm really looking forward to heading over and getting started."

Charteris was also offered a deal by Cardiff Blues but the 32-year-old opted for a return to Bath, where his family have a house and he studied at university.

Bath head coach Mike Ford added: "Luke has been one of Wales' stand-out locks in recent years, and had a very good Rugby World Cup.

"He's a superb athlete at the set-piece and in the loose, has strong leadership qualities and a lot of experience that he can bring to the squad.

"We're delighted to have one of the best locks in the world join us, and he will help us keep improving and move quickly on to that next level."

Speaking on the move, Charteris told Wales Online: “It’s a great opportunity as that’s where I live when I’m back in the UK, having been to university there,” he explained.

“My wife’s family are there, so with the little ones, that’s the place that’s going to be very good for me.

“I’ll be coming back and playing at a very high level of rugby, which is important.

“Being in a team like Racing now, I want to come back and be challenging and Bath are a very, very strong team and hopefully I can go in and add something there.”

Charteris was at least tempted by a return to Wales.

“There obviously was a temptation to come back to Wales,” he admitted.

“The thing for me being an older player, I am not a priority for a dual contract and I understand that. I didn’t have an offer from a Welsh team to come back when I agreed there (with Bath).

“Afterwards, Cardiff (Blues) did come to me and say they would like me to come back but I had already signed. It had already been done and dusted.

“I won’t be classed as a wild card as I didn’t have an offer from a Welsh team or a dual contract when I signed for Bath. That was a big factor and that’s good for me.

“I wanted to be available for Wales without having to rely on being a wild card pick, which would put more pressure on yourself.

“The idea of the dual contracts is to keep the young boys in Wales and there are boys more deserving and more needing than me.

“It works out well for me and it allows me to keep playing for Wales, which is what I want to do.”

Reflecting on his time abroad, he said: “I love France and I have loved my time over there.

“But I still feel I have got a few years left to play international rugby and I wanted to give myself the best opportunity to do that.”